Before you start reading, this I am in no way calling anyone a “Dummy!” However, I know it feels (or has felt) that way when we’ve had to ask our coach a question about anything CrossFit related, so be sure to forward to this to a friend. We’ve all been a newbie at one point or another, and it’s good to remember to be patient when someone new asks you a question. Even when it’s the most obvious thing!

This blog post is dedicated to all the new CrossFitters out there that have walked into a CrossFit gym and had no clue what all the jargon meant. I remember one of my first Kettlebell WODs had weight that was at 1.5 poods. My first thought was, “What the crap is this?” I asked my buddy Corey (My best friend with whom I started CrossFit who now owns Mercer Island CrossFit) and turns out he was clueless just as I was. So what did we do? Yep, we headed straight to google.com to figure out what the heck a “pood” was.

To save all you new CrossFitters some time, here is a list of some terms we use within the gym to help you get started:

Squat Snatch- Olympic Lift. Barbell starts on the ground and ends up in the overhead squat position.

Burpee- Gymnastic move that you drop to the ground, do a push-up, jump into a squat and then jump. Best overall movement of CrossFit because it has the move range of movement.

Box Jump- Jump onto a box

Wallball Shot- Using a medicine ball drop into a front squat position and standing up using the momentum to push to ball to hit the target on the wall.

This list isn’t EVERYTHING you will encounter, but it’s a great start. At the very least you won’t look like a deer in the headlights when you see Olympic lifts or acronyms on the whiteboard.

I repeatedly tell my athletes to ALWAYS train with a coach and NEVER resort to doing it on your own. For example, if your child is potty training, do you let them teach themselves or do you help? You help. Anyone can pee on their own, but it will be a lot more effective if someone told them where and how, right?! Of course I’m right! Same thing goes for lifting. Our job is to teach you what you need to know to reach your goals, and then help you get there. So after reading this, I hope you head to the box and feel more confident about hitting the WOD. Don’t be “that guy” who has no clue — be “that guy” who has done his homework and is ready to learn more.